White Christmas, Bleach Style
by Kyrie and Lacrimaesalix
Summary: This is my first fanfic so please read and pretty please review. Let's just say it's all the gang and a lot of Christmas fun! I hope you enjoy it! Rated high T just to be perfectly safe!


Disclaimer: Unfortunately I own no part of Bleach!

Thoughts and emphasis are in italics

Prologue

In Ichigo's bedroom

"We've gotta go. Don't get yourself beat up before we come back," called Rukia with a sad smile at Ichigo. He nodded back easily, with this arrangement he would evade Kenpachi altogether (well the guy was _scary_) and Ichigo would not feel he was being rude to Soul Society by not showing up to the corps first Christmas party (long story.) Besides, the teenager had other important plans. All in all, the orange haired boy secretly was convinced he was on the better end of the deal, unfortunately a certain stuffed animal felt the opposite about the whole thing.

"Nee-san don't leave me! Make Ichigo go in your place," Kon cried jumping at her usual tears of goodbye running down his mane. All he got was a flash of black and red along with an arm hitting him hard against the wall. Rukia raised a surprised eyebrow; Renji for a change had beaten her to the punch. He laughed at her surprise, mentioning something about that was the only Christmas present she was getting. Ichigo shook his head sadly with a smile. Wouldn't that thing ever learn?

…Apparently not as he heard Kon muttering under his breath in the corner.

Renji casually waved a goodbye over his shoulder as Rukia shunpoed out of Ichigo's bedroom window, "Later Ichigo. Merry Christmas!" He disappeared behind his childhood friend into the night. Ichigo lazily walked over to the window and watched the sky and the fading figures.

"Why does that guy always forget to close the window?" he muttered with a rare grin on his strained face amid Kon's tears in the background. The gentle, chilly wind blew his orange hair back as he closed the window.

In Orihime's house

5:58 glowed painfully bright in the aquamarine eyes. Looking at the clock, the owner of the cell phone, calm and collected on the outside, seethed inside. Snapping the phone closed in annoyance, he saw Momo's energetic childhood picture flash on the screen. Randomly he contemplated updating it; however… something always stopped him (not to mention last time he had seen Momo she still wasn't looking so hot.) Like usual, Toushirou Hitsugaya pushed the detail of the picture to the back of his mind and came back to the present.

He glanced up quickly at his lieutenant who was talking, _if_ possible, faster than we when she was making an excuse for not completing her paperwork. Poor Inoue was shaking like a bobble head, trying to keep up with the information Matsumoto was throwing out at the last minute.

"So _then_ you finish the turkey with the perfect combination of squid and spices on top," rattled off Matsumoto intently, determined to take Orihime's recipe back to Seritei correctly. She paused for Orihime's next nod of conformation, and a chilly voice grabbed the opportunity.

For some reason it seemed a little miffed, "Um…Matsumoto, _did_ you forget to tell Kuchiki kun and Abarai when we were leaving?"

The captain knitted his eyebrows together, inside counting to ten. Matsumoto twirled a ringlet of fiery red hair, turning to face her white-haired taicho.

"No…I think I told them."

"MATSUMOTO!"

Rangiku worriedly watched her captain explode at her. Granted, the whole exploding part was an everyday occurrence…usually, though, he did not turn grayish-white. She knew however in reality he had been overly stressed, dropping the temperature in the house several degrees as the day moved on.

People needed to calm down. That is why the head-commander had ordered everyone back to Serietei for the holidays to relax and have some fun. Rangiku had embraced that order to the fullest and was determined to turn everyone's frowns upside down. She knew exactly who she would start with as she looked at her white-haired friend, who was at the moment frowning pointedly at her.

"Don't worry taicho, now I remember! I told them the day we went caroling." She saw her captain visibly relax.

Hitsugaya indeed felt a little better, though for some reason his stomach was churning. Maybe it was because the warm holiday season rebelled against his whole nature, and the old man was forcing him to celebrate Christmas. It didn't help everyone else was getting into it, even his dragon. With the pressure of the coming war, he viewed this whole occasion really as a waste of time. He heard Hynorinmaru chuckling in the background.

However he was a captain, and he had to follow the old man's orders to the letter. Hitsugaya again checked his phone…those orders also included returning to Soul Society _on time _and with the right _people_. His dragon started laughing harder, harsh laughs that were shaking the captain's inner world. _Would you be quiet and leave me with a moment of some sanity please_, he thought to Hynorinmaru as he felt the beginnings of a major headache coming on. Thankfully the dragon subsided in sympathy and Hitsugaya ordered his thoughts back together.

_Baka, _he scolded himself, _why did you trust Matsumoto with this?_ Apparently Matsumoto had the same mindset.

"_If _you had gone caroling with all of us, _I _would not have had to make the huge effort to remember to tell them, and _you _would not be in such a bad mood stewing about it right now," Matsumoto pouted with her lower lip out.

The frosty, gruff captain waved it off indifferently, "_I _was fighting hollows, remember!"

… At least that's what everyone else thought.

He saw Inoue's face pinch in thought, "It really it's a shame Hitsugaya-kun you could not go. Wait! I have extra song sheets you can take back with you!" She clapped her hands and her face lit up as Matsumoto cheered in delight. _Great, this has so not been my day_, the child prodigy groaned to himself, yet he found no way he could refuse without hurting Inoue's feelings. The girl had seemed down enough for the past couple of days as it was.

Thankfully he was saved from answering as he sensed two familiar reiatsues quickly approach the house, politely knock, and then barge their way inside. "You're late!" he scolded turning arms crossed to Abarai and Rukia.

"Sorry," Abarai stuttered as he saw his breath leave his mouth then form into tiny snowflakes. _Wonderful, he's in an extremely bad mood___

Rukia shuffled her feet uncomfortably, bowing her head. "Please, forgive us. We got caught up with saying goodbye to Ichigo and his family." She glanced up and smiled, "they got me a Chappey bracelet for Christmas!" Renji rolled his eyes, earning him a punch in his right shoulder.

"What was that for?" he yelled at her.

"Figure it out," Rukia snapped, smiling at him sweetly. Meanwhile the girls came over and were gushing over the bracelet, Matsumoto especially loudly. Abarai's mouth hung open in blank confusion.

Hitsugaya decided it was time for a little intervention, _I feel like I am watching five year olds_. "You can figure it out on the way Abarai, we have to go. Matsumoto _please_ open the gate."

She gave her typical sigh, "Okay taicho." She made a move to turn around and noticed Orihime's red hair hide her face as she dropped it down, apparently trying to cover her sadness. Now that wouldn't do!

Renji still stood slightly behind Rukia as he contemplated on what in the world that statement meant, _She was probably just joking around_, when Matsumoto wrapped her arms around Orihime for a rib-crunching hug. _That was unexpected_! He was slightly worried Rangiku would break her in half, and hurried forward as he saw Orihime's face start to turn blue with Rukia close behind "Ran, pay attention!"

Rukia laughed to herself, _He's one to talk! It is so…funny when he gets distracted._

However, Hitsugaya noticed Orihime's large drop of spiritual pressure first. Quickly he leaped forward, "MATSUMOTO! Knock it off!" He grabbed his lieutenant's right shoulder just as he saw Abarai grab her left as they pushed her backwards. Rukia kept Inoue upright.

It amazed the cold-hearted captain how the girl could keep a smile on her face, even after that. "Thanks Rangiku! I feel better now."

"Anytime!" the bubbly woman replied.

Rukia stared, _How can she practically commit murder and still smile?_

Hitsugaya turned to glare dangerously at Matsumoto and whispered under his breath, "You are getting _so_ much paperwork when we get back!" He sent a blast of icy air her way to prove it.

But Rangiku shrugged it off; Orihime had perked up already and that's all that mattered! Plus, she was good at creatively avoiding the paperwork!

So once again she turned to unlock the gate, and again turned sharply around again hand reaching into her pocket and pulling out a small box wrapped in pink with a huge purple fuzzy bow.

"And here I am almost forgetting the most important part of Christmas!" she twittered handing it into the shocked red head's hands.

"I can't-" Orihime started.

"Oh, yes you can!" Matsumoto said, "It's from taicho and me."

_That's where my money disappeared to_, thought Hitsugaya quietly, noting he needed to change where he hid his stash. A bewildered Inoue glanced at him; he shook his head, "Don't mention it. After all, you've put up with this _pain_ beside me so you deserve something. She picked it out though, so blame her if it's horrible."

Inoue returned to her trademark smile and faraway look in her eyes, "It can't be horrible; no Christmas present is horrible. It's the thought that counts. Christmas is about being all together and the gifts you _already _have. I feel one of my greatest gifts is having you all as friends." Everyone felt extremely touched; even Renji shifted from foot to foot feeling a little uncomfortable in such a situation.

Rukia stepped forward and gave Orihime a hug, and not a death grip one like Matsumoto's. "I could not have said it better myself."

Hitsugaya had by this point given up on the possibility of Matsumoto opening the gate and hastened to open it himself; it gave him something to do. That Inoue always surprised him, after all he had never really considered her as a friend before. His cold personality usually saw people as various degrees of aquaintants, with the exceptions of Momo and Matsumoto. He felt an irritated pressure pushing into his brain. _Yes, I guess I would consider you a pretty good friend too, Hynorinmaru_.

His dragon smiled to him, _you better!_

Meanwhile Rukia and Renji were saying their goodbyes.

The raven haired girl stepped out of the embrace and looked Orihime straight in the eye, "I will see you at the same time next week for training, understood. It's part of your Christmas present."

"Hai, thanks!" said Orihime with relief. Rukia knew she hated being alone during holidays.

"Are you _sure_ you don't want to come with us?" groaned Renji, getting the same vibe.

"Sorry Inoue, you know Abarai, unfortunately, she was not in my orders to bring back; therefore, I am not allowed to do so," Hitsugaya sighed apologetically from the corner to the girl. No, really, he felt bad about the situation.

"We…could sneak you unnoticed through the gate," whispered Matsumoto mischievously.

"It's okay, really. Tatsuki invited me to Christmas at her place, to it's not like I am being left out," Orihime insisted. Plus she would still be able to go to Soul Society and train with Rukia. To top it off, she was really good at sounding cheery when she in reality wasn't.

"It's ready! We are already late," Hitsugaya at this point glared pointedly at a couple of people, "So if you don't hurry through I am turning you all into ice blocks." No one doubted his words for a minute, as they headed his way.

Rukia glanced at Renji, "You are still trying to figure it out aren't you?"

"What's it matter to you," Renji grumbled.

Rukia and Matsumoto looked at each other and shook their heads in mock sorrow sadly, "Boys!"

Orihime giggled as the boys in question seemed confused, and Rukia and Renji disappeared through the gate. Matsumoto threw a kiss to the girl over her shoulder and followed closely behind. Hitsugaya muttered, "_Why_ do I put up with this?" as he disappeared along with them and the gate.

Orihime's heart felt lighter as she slowly walked over to the Christmas tree that she, Matsumoto, and even Hitsugaya had put up. The lights reflected the stars, and the icicles Hitsugaya had added reflected the lights. As much as he wanted to deny it, he had enjoyed the occasion. She leaned down happily and set the beautiful gift under the tree; thinking about what she had told everyone Christmas truly meant. _I am blessed already to have so many friends. This Christmas will be beautiful after all!_

--

Author's note

Thanks everyone for reading! This is my first solo fanfic so, please no flames. But constructive critism is sincerely appreciated; because, this is my first solo and I am not sure what I am doing

I want to thank Sali for leading me through and being an awesome editor!

Please don't kill me if I had Hitsugaya say Rukia's name out of character, did I do it right?

Also I am debating on changing my narration style; at points to me it seemed awkward, what do you think?

No pairs are set in stone yet except for some slight Hits/Momo. If you have someone in mind just let me know, and I might be able to work them in.

I have several random Christmas ideas coming up, but that does not mean I have thought of all the good ones. Any ideas I would greatly appreciate.

Now that I have bored you all, either go on to the next story or press that review button (_please do the latter_). You know where it is.

I will try to update soon, but with school I can't promise when. However I guarantee all the mysteries, like what Hime's present is and what Hitsugaya was doing while the others caroled, will be revealed.

Thanks for reading!


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